This is quite interesting, especially after the earlier announcement of the partnership with Random House. Obviously it means they're likely intending to release more novels per expansion/game than they've previously done, but I wonder if it means something happened with Random House.

In any case I think it's a very good thing. Despite the fact I've barely been playing Blizzard games over the past month, I do for the most part really enjoy the stories and setting of their universes and eagerly await more in the novel/comic format, which I consider a superior method of storytelling to games.

Because Hearthstone isn't meant to be taken seriously. Come on man, you can't be disappointed in something that blatantly wasn't what you expected.

It would be if Metzen worked on it.

: Alright everyone we need to come up with 3 Hearthstone expansions to keep players busy for the next 24 months. What do you guys have?

: I have a Naxx expansion. People like the Scourge and they would buy cards themed after it.

: We can do Forsaken. Still undead. More cards with Sylvanas. *silent moaning*

: You already had an expansion Kosak and you wasted it on furries. Next.

: A gangster themed expansion with all sorts of diverse gangs each with it's own backstory and characters.

Hmm, sound good but we need more edge in there. More seriousness to play with their hearts.

: Oh, then I have an interesting concept with Night Elves and-

: Thrall retires with his wife on Draenor and grows depressed over his past adventures. He wanders the land and comes across many different orcs. And think of the many cards we can do of Aggra struggling as a lonely mother and of her child.

While I don't really disagree with those who said this could just lead to more retcons and general confusion, especially with some new people at the lore helm, I can't help but wonder if this is a move intended for a time in the future without their games being as successful as they are now. While I'm not of the opinion that WoW is going to die anytime soon and will continue to live a healthy life for the foreseeable future, there will probably come a time when it won't be so successful.

If the fact that it remained at number one best seller in Amazon's graphic novels section for about two weeks and they actually ran out of stock is any indication, Chronicle vol 1 was a massive success. Blizz has very good market researchers and analysts, and it's possible they've come to the conclusion that there are a lot more people out there who care for the lore and story of their IP's than thought. People who, like many of us, enjoy playing Warcraft but find the lore more fun to delve into than the actual game itself. Which leaves me with the idea that this department's intended purpose is partly to produce novels and comics for fans of the lore to purchase and keep up with the story after their games, even WoW, have gone offline for good. Much like how the Star Wars books enjoyed great popularity despite the sixteen and ten year gaps between trilogies.

Coupled with the fact that Traveler was partially an employment of the extremely successful Disney tactic of hooking them while they're young, I'm left with the impression that Blizz has been doing some very serious future-proofing as of late.

Yea I noticed that. While I liked pretty much every movie on that list I've seen, it's curious how she's made the jump from visual effects in movies to story and lore for video games. I'm sure she's been made aware of how big the shoes she's filling are and she does have an impressive resume, so I'm optimistic.